2016 High School Essay Contest

Recent student protests have included demands that college administrators suppress speech that the protesting students believe is insensitive to racial minorities, women or other historically disempowered groups. Would the granting of these demands violate the First Amendment?

FBI Director James Comey says increased public scrutiny of police officers, including cell phone videos, is making officers reluctant to aggressively respond to crime. Does the First Amendment protect a citizen’s right to videotape police?

Connecticut’s governor has proposed “confidential” trials in some cases for defendants up to age 25. Would this conflict with the public’s right to know if the criminal justice system is run in a fair and responsible fashion?

Rules

Essays must be at least 400 words but no more than 600 words and emailed no later than March 31, 2016, to cfogessay@aol.com. Essays should include the student’s full name, school, grade and teacher email contact information. Winners will be announced by May 16, 2016.

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